Seven Attempts to Fall
by 808Lionfire
Summary: (Modern!AU) Thanks to her two best friends and their nosey obsession with her love life, it only took them seven attempts to make her fall in love with a man whose name she never even knew. (Completed with a bonus chapter!)
1. Attempt One

**A/N: Yes, this is a Christmas/New Years short-story (well. Kinda. It also involves Halloween and Thanksgiving sooo... yeah) . No, I don't believe it's too early for it (pfft. It's never too early—or _late I suppose_ —for the holidays). ****And once again, my BrOT3 makes their grand appearance! This time though, it isn't in a HighSchool!AU. Just a modern one.**

 **Believe it or not, this story started with this prompt:** _I don't know you and you don't know me but our mutual friends think we'd look cute together and won't stop trying to set us up and oh my freaking god I'm so sorry._

 **And then stemmed into this combined drabble mess. There are seven parts that I endearingly dubbed as 'attempts' and although the time of day may seem random to you, it actually has a bit of a pattern to it (don't overthink it though, there's no real, deep meaning to it tbh).** **If I feel up to it, I** **might even make a bonus chapter including _all_ seven 'attempts' completely covered in Natsu's 'P.O.V.' ****Hell week (A.K.A. finals week) is over, so hopefully I'll have more time to write~**

 **But anyway, enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

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 **Overview:** Rated T for minor to major language and a dash of mature implications. Modern!AU. Genre: Romance, a dash of Humor/Friendship/Family, and— _if there was such a genre_ —Awkward.

 **Summary:** Thanks to her two best friends and their nosey obsession with her love life, it only took them seven attempts to make her fall in love with a man whose name she never even knew. (Modern!AU)

 **Pairing(s):** Natsu/Lucy, Gray/Juvia, Gajeel/Levy, Lucy/Juvia/Levy sister-ship (A.K.A. my BrOT3), and general Friendship/Family feels.

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 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt One: 25 September x791, 2:41 p.m._

The first time it happened... well, the blonde wasn't really sure _what_ happened.

At first, it was just a normal, late-September day out with just herself, Lucy Heartfilia, and her two blue-haired best friends; Juvia Lockser and Levy McGarden. It was a normal girls' day where her happily-taken best friends usually get picked off one after another by their significant other.

That left her happily- _single_ self to her own devices (which wasn't a bad thing; she loved to immerse herself in her thoughts without worrying if she was missing an important piece of discussion).

They had been out on a celebratory shopping spree since Gray managed to ' _man up_ ' (definitely Lucy's words when she heard the news, but in her defense, Levy agreed whole-heartedly) and propose to Juvia during their date a few days ago. The newly engaged couple dived into their bedroom the moment he proposed and didn't come up for air until Levy and Lucy barged into Gray's living room, blasting _Ice, Ice, Baby_ on repeat until the dark-haired man got fed up with it.

The girls managed to drag Juvia out of the apartment long enough to have a nice lunch and squeal over the wedding plans they were ironically daydreaming about a month ago. The moment the long-haired bluenette finally started to fantasize about her highly-anticipated consummation night, the two other women silently agreed that the couple lasted apart a lot longer than they originally thought.

So it was no a surprise when Juvia got a demanding call from her newly entitled _fiancé_ when they were passing the front of Magnolia's famed bookstore, _Iron Ink_ (which was conveniently owned by none other than the kind-hearted, most sweetest, least devious, Levy McGarden). It was a bit upsetting to see their bubbly friend go, but since both of their bets on how long they would last were wrong, at least they didn't lose their money!

After a brief check-in with Laki in the _Iron Script_ , the two women strolled arm-in-arm across the street. There was an alarming flag-raising grin on the tiny bluenette's face as they stopped to grab a cup of coffee at the cute, quaint little coffee-stop slash bakery (which was— _by the way_ —conveniently owned by none other than the open-hearted, most naïve, least suspecting, Lucy Heartfilia) and only grew more suspicious as they conversed. But despite being all that and more, the golden-haired woman thought nothing of her friend's smile.

At least, she thought nothing of it _until_ the bluenette's boyfriend, Gajeel Redfox, stormed over with a positively ruffled look on his face.

As they stood to greet him, she felt something weigh in her stomach. Now normally, the brute's scowl wouldn't faze Lucy— _Levy's boyfriend was probably the most grumpiest man she had the pleasure of meeting_ —but there was something more than just grumpy on his face; in fact, accompanying his livid expression, there was a wonderful drawing of a— _in lack of a better word_ —dick.

Maybe laughing wasn't the best approach?

Nevertheless, her laughter was loud and could have been considered as inconsiderate if it wasn't for the fact that the crimson-eyed brute's girlfriend was trying to fight her own snickers back too. The golden-haired woman wasn't even the least bit embarrassed when she snorted a couple of times, unable to suck in enough air before bursting out into another round of giggles.

Don't tell him this, but she admits later that she kinda deserved that half-hearted shove; however, she definitely didn't deserved getting half-heartedly shoved into _someone behind him_.

An _extremely attractive_ someone behind him.

An extremely attractive someone behind him _who was kind enough to catch her_.

And he was grinning down at her like he was just all too amused with the scene in front of him.

Her eyes curiously rest on the shocking head of pink hair. Not to say that she hadn't seen her fair share of pink hair before, because she has. Sure, it was mainly on women and sometimes it was dyed while this... well, this looked natural. And from close up, she could see the roots of his hair and it definitely proved that he didn't dye it.

She barely noticed the glare Gajeel shot the pink-haired stranger, but it was enough to tell her who exactly what the culprit for the... work of art on the giant-of-a-man's face. The other man only chuckled when the crimson-eyed brute shot him a scalding look with equally scalding curses. Lucy quickly angled her face away when the stranger ripped his eyes away to look down at her again.

He didn't say anything to her thankfully, but he did turn away to shoot a remark back to Gajeel. The words spoken were lost between the blood rushing past her ears and the harsh, thumping heartbeat that pulsed in her throat. Once she got her nerves settled, she belatedly realized that she was pathetically draped against this stranger's chest and squeaked in horror. The golden-haired woman quickly tore herself out of the stranger's arms after enjoying his warmth a moment too long and gasped out a mortified apology, her cheeks pinking furiously.

The man just laughed a laugh that raced straight through her and made her toes curl involuntarily at the sound. Lucy found herself whirling on her heels– half to hide her steadily darkening face and half to scold Gajeel for being such an _ass_. Unfortunately, neither he nor his girlfriend was anywhere to be seen. She only caught the tail end of the brute's winter coat disappearing into _Iron Ink_ across the street and she gaped.

The blonde turned just in time to see the pink-haired stranger follow her gaze and roll his eyes.

Lucy hastily dug into her purse for a fifty-percent-off-coupon for any pastry-coffee combo in her café. She originally planned to keep this one for her eldest regular since there wasn't an expire date and could be used twice, but when the man peered back at her curiously, she basically shoved it into the stranger's hands. The golden-haired woman mumbled another apology and stumbled into the corner coffee-stop without giving him the chance to deny the gift.

She only let her face burn when she holed herself in said café– whose name the woman would reflect upon a year-or-so later and find it so ironically fitting.

The café she worked her blood, sweat, and tears into; _Celestial Fire_.


	2. Attempt Two

**A/N: I just went over my other stories the other day and noticed that something funny happened to my other story (shameless** **plug) Lucy Heartfilia's End. The character tag that was _originally_ labeled as OC is now labeled as Future Rogue... I should really change it... but I'm _really_ lazy right now. I don't know how long it has been like that, but just know that it wasn't intentional.**

 **That is all.**

 **Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

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 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Two: 24 October x791, 12:04 p.m._

The next time it happened was when Juvia invited her over to discuss dining details for her and Gray's wedding reception.

It had been just under a month since she literally fell into the hold of an attractive man with strange pink hair, and she, thankfully, had yet to see him since. Just thinking about the day made her face flush in embarrassment. What was even worse, she _ran away_. It was only as Lucy fled to her office when she finally realized _exactly_ what they— _or at least what_ _Levy_ —was trying to do.

Just a month before, the golden-haired café owner approached her two blue-haired best friends during a peculiar writer's block to bounce ideas back and forth. The topic on possible romances spurred them into a conversation where they gushed about weddings, babies, and just love in general. It started out innocently enough. After a while, however, Levy had been adamant to set her up while Juvia agreed firmly.

Lucy tried to protest– she really did, but the other two tuned her out and conspired in low whispers. That wasn't the first time they did that and, honestly, she got used to it. They have done this multiple times before and none of their attempts them were ever successful.

Now, two months from that day, there was a niggling feeling in the back of her mind as she talked to the long-haired bluenette on the phone. It was late when she took the call and the niggling told her not to trust her friends' innocence– that it was just another ploy to set her up with another poor sod like they tried to do a month before. Unfortunately, Lucy detected the genuine anxiety and pure, unadulterated joy in her friend's voice and found her resolve waning.

Being the open-hearted person she was, the blonde couldn't deny the bluenette the bond they shared when it seemed like the woman needed it the most; she couldn't just deny her _best friend's_ request to help her plan her reception because she was being _paranoid_.

So after hanging up with the bluenette, the golden-haired woman was meticulous in filling the business briefcase she occasionally uses for the every-so-often business ventures relating to _Celestial Fire_. Lucy made sure to keep the case light– only filling it with the barest essentials so she could make a quick escape if need be.

Thank the stars that she did.

The blonde woke up late the next day. Lucy couldn't help it; she ran the café past eight the night before and stayed up talking to Juvia 'til midnight. When she finally managed to fall asleep, it was like she couldn't stop dreaming. The golden-haired woman thanked her lucky stars that she forced herself to pack beforehand. All she had time to do was brush her teeth, clean her face, and dash out with briefcase in hand.

It was noon by the time Lucy had arrived at Juvia and Gray's apartment and she was slightly out of breath from the impatient dash up the stairwell.

The winter, Magnolian air was starting to show its true colors. So, she dressed appropriately. And by ' _appropriately_ ', she means that she dressed in a fashion where she had an emergency two a.m. call from her drunk best friend and had to emotionally and physically detach herself from the pleasant dream to pick her drunk friend up from the newest block party. And by _that_ , she means that she didn't bother to brush her hair and she knew for a fact that she looked like absolute _crap_. Albeit, she looked like absolutely bundled up and shamelessly comfortable crap.

Gray and Juvia had seen her in worse, so what was the harm, really?

She sent a quick text to Juvia telling her that she was at their door and the replying text was near instant. The blonde had narrowed her eyes at the innocent pixels depicting the message that didn't look as innocent as it should've been. The text was just a quick ' _use the spare_ ', but it set off alarms in her mind. While she didn't completely ignore them like when they chimed for Levy, she tried to block the warning out. She still felt that niggling from earlier, but the golden-haired woman _really_ wanted to trust her best friend, and so she did exactly that.

Famous last words.

Even the way the key slid into the lock was suspicious, but she ignored it because her life-long friendship was a lot more important than a moment of paranoia.

Lucy didn't bother to take off her shoes or even shut the front door as she called for her friend from the foyer. _Actually_ , she didn't need to even make it past the foyer because at that moment– _right_ at that _very_ moment, a man walked out of the bathroom to her left. Her chocolate-orbs caught the surprisingly olive-green-colored eyes that she hadn't noticed a month before and they both froze at the sight of each other.

The bright-red, flame designed toothbrush stuck out blatantly from his closed lips and the steam wafted from the open bathroom behind him, giving off a strange, ethereal feel. There was a pearl of toothpaste curling at the corner of his mouth, but he didn't seem to notice it. Instead, his eyes widened in surprise at the sight of her and her eyes widened right back in return.

Now, by no means was Lucy innocent to the generalities of a man's body (she was a _writer_ for star's sake!), but this man exuded such a heat that— _if she was in the right state of mind_ —would have made her flush and stammer incoherently.

Despite the inner berating, her gaze defied the warning and watched as a drop of water dripped off of his wet, pink hair and rolled down his bare chest, surprising six-pack, and soaked into the fluffy, yellow towel that hung low on his hips. His body– oh _stars_ don't even get her started on it; she wouldn't know where to even _begin_. She will swear later that she _did not_ drool, but she did swallow thickly at the sight of his scars.

Especially the large crossing just above his left hip.

Blame it on the author in her, but there was something enticing to her about battle-worn patches of flesh. Despite the damage, the flesh fought to mend together again and though it was scarred, it left behind history– a secret held by only those who proved witness. Like tattoos, she believed there was a story behind every piece of healed tissue. And _no_ , it wasn't a fetish. Curiosity romanticized the otherwise plain flesh, but there was something about them that drew her in.

Her gaze finally drifted back to meet his, the toothbrush that was once trapped between his lips was now hanging limply from his fingers. The darkened, hooded look his olive-gaze gave her made every nerve in her body spark alive with heat and she forced back the shiver it caused. There was no doubt in her mind that he knew exactly where her thoughts trailed and it didn't look like he minded where they went. But she did. So she did what any normal, unperturbed-with-the-current-stuation kind of woman would.

She took a huge back-step right out of the apartment and used every muscle in her body to slam the door shut.


	3. Attempt Three

**A/N: I'm sorry if I missed replies to anyone. My email has been acting up lately and I have no idea why (I should probably clean out my inbox though).** **Sorry for the lateness of this one! I was planning on posting this chapter at two, but my mom had to go to work and I had to feed my baby sister. It's all good though! Just a few hours late, no harm done.**

 **There's a bit of OOC with Natsu in this chapter, but my excuse is that he does mature a little when he's older, and it's kinda hard to capture his everything when I'm saving dialogue for the last chapter only. Plus this is an AU and I have a right to a little OOC-ness.**

 **I made this slightly longer to make up for my lateness!** **Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

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 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Three: 31 October x791, 7:00 p.m._

The next time they met was on Halloween.

Lucy was always running and rushing, even in her downtime. It kept her busy and she liked the organized chaos that being busy brought. It was purely in her nature to rush, and it was _exactly_ that nature that helped her keep _Celestial Fire_ open every day of the week for every month of the year. Halloween and other holidays were no different than any other normal day; that is what she believed. The only variance was that it gave her an excuse to play around with a few holiday-themed coffee and pastry recipes.

Autumn was her favorite time to experiment because it was the well-reknowned pumpkin season in Magnolia, and pumpkins were her all-time-obesssion. Countless regulars that frequented the humble café raved and craved what new pumpkin recipe she'd bring into her workshop. Her most popular— _by far_ —would be her Pumpkin-Cinnamon Hot Chocolate, followed closely by the Pumpkin Spice latte.

And although she locks the doors earlier than any other day, everyone in Magnolia knew her shop wasn't really closed until the last customer left the café. Customer satisfaction was her policy, so she resisted the urge to shuffle out any one of her patrons. Unfortunately, that was why she was late to a few of her friends' parties sometimes.

Time, however, she made sure to close early. Levy pleaded for her to help with preparations and who was she to deny her best friend a task like that? It could be just another ploy to set her up with someone but she accepted it anyway. Even if it was a ploy, she deserves it considering all the times she was either late or unable to make it because her café schedule clashed. If pretending to fall into the bluenette's scheme would make her happy, then Lucy would silently resign to her fate and feign ignorance.

Ugh. Curse her self-guilt-trip through Tartaros' flames and back.

The sun slowly started to set when she finally shuffled out Ms. Milkovich (a sweet, old woman who told her that the Hot Chocolate she makes reminds her of her late mother– back in the old, winter days in the Land of Isvan) and the golden-haired woman couldn't help the tired sigh that pushed past her lips. Her eyes closed as she pressed her forehead against the wooden frame of the double-door entrance. It could have been her imagination, but she swore she saw a flash of pink round the corner outside her shop and then shrugged it off.

Lucy didn't want to move because she knew that she still had to do the routine closing clean-up and it didn't help her case when she remembered that she excused her employees long before she locked the store.

It was a holiday and half of her workers had their own families to go to. Lucy appreciated the offers to stay behind, but what kind of boss would she be if she let them do that? Work will always be there but who know how long they had left with family. Children would grow up and move out, some family only visit for the holidays, and— _as morbid as it sounds_ —death takes its toll. Sometimes unexpectedly.

Lucy knows that a lot better than anyone.

The blonde woman instinctively reached towards the bolt and deftly twisted the lock, the click resonated in the empty shop louder than realistically possible. She slowly opened her eyes, her brown orbs tracing an imaginary pattern on the wooden design. Eventually, Lucy forced herself to push away from the door and took a deep breath.

Warm tendrils of courage filled her veins at the familiar scent of her café and her resulting smile was pure and determined. She pushed up the sleeves to her shirt and got to work. Every so often, she glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner of her shop to keep the time. Levy's party officially started at eight but she wanted her at the apartment around seven. It was currently six, so she still had time.

In a last ditch effort to make the best possible use of her time, she decided to clean up here first and change into her costume at Levy and Gajeel's apartment. It was a tradition of theirs to go trick-or-treating before getting totally wasted. She lost a round of beer-pong last year against the crimson-eyed brute himself and he dared her to wear the most embarrassing costume he and Levy owned. She wasn't surprised that he remembered their bet despite how drunk they both were.

The ass wasn't the least bit embarrassed when he showed up at her café earlier that morning with the costume of his choice on the hangar; the clear, plastic, dry-cleaning bag only made her flushed face drop in mortification.

She was sorely tempted to Lucy Kick him where the sun doesn't shine, but she couldn't– at least, not under the watchful eyes of her customers. She'll get him back though, no doubt. She's going to win the Halloween challenge this year, she's going to make him dress up as a kiwi, she's going to cackle evilly when his giant black-cat, Pantherlily, tires to bite and scratch him, and she's not going to care when Levy sends her a disapproving look.

Lucy is still going to hope Lily aims for the face.

The golden-haired woman was still snickering to herself as she left her café and firmly locked the doors. She rounded the corner, swinging her keys around her finger as she made her way to Levy and Gajeel's apartment complex, which was conveniently three blocks from the main street her café was settled on. The cursed costume hung limply of of her arm but even that wouldn't dim the happiness she found in her small plan.

It was roughly around six-fifty when she arrived at her best friend's doorstep and Levy immediately pulled her into the apartment with an eager grin. Lucy smiled back and sheepishly held up the costume, silently asking for a moment to change. The tiny blue-haired woman rolled her eyes and led the blonde to the room they used to use whenever they had a girls' sleep-over before Gajeel moved in.

After a brief, paranoid scan around the room, she came to the conclusion that it hadn't been used recently and nodded her thanks to Levy. The bluenette rolled her eyes again before sternly telling the blonde to change quickly or she was going to send someone after her. Lucy immediately got to changing into her horrid costume once the door shut behind her because Levy was serious. The tiny woman was honest to a fault and she followed through with every promise. That was probably why Lucy befriended her; promises were sacred and were meant to be honored.

Ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door.

In spite of knowing that knock would've come sooner or later, the golden-haired woman couldn't stop the the loud cry of horror when she lost grip of the stubborn zipper she _finally_ managed to grab after four— _long_ —minutes of uncomfortable twisting. She was right about to curse the seven useless years of gymnastics when the door burst open and she squealed in a mixture of surprise and horror.

In an effort to scramble away, she slipped on the freakin' _headband_ for her costume and promptly face-planted the ground.

Thankfully, the bedroom floor was completely covered by plush carpeting, so she knew her face would be fine. But no amount of cloud-like rugs, however, will save her ego from being bruised. So she just laid there. Unmoving.

The golden-haired woman whimpered softly. Her entire back was exposed thanks to the stupid zipper that refused to cooperate and her entire front was still complaining from the fall. The headband she tripped on somehow managed to cling to the curve of her waist and was currently bruising her stomach with its pointy end. There was no greater embarrassment at the moment. The blonde would even take Gajeel walking into _Celestial Fire_ a with her bunny suit a hundred times over than experience this scene again.

The blonde twist her head slightly to peek up at the person who was the direct cause of her humiliation. She honestly didn't care who burst into the room; all she knew was that she was going to be mortified either way. What was the harm in checking? Nothing could be worse than Gajeel or Gray bursting in to watch her face-plant the ground. The would never let her live it down seeing as she gave them so much grief about their questionable man-hood concerning their girlfriends.

Ah.

Never mind.

She takes that back.

Lucy would rather take the merciless teasing of both Gray _and_ Gajeel than to see the amused smile on the pink-haired stranger's stupidly handsome face any day. She was glad the blood rushing through her ears blocked out the chuckling she knew was coming from him. The golden-haired woman faintly heard him ask if she was alright and she just shook her head, too mortified to speak.

How could she even be slightly okay after _that_?

For what felt like the hundredth time in the last five minutes, the blonde squeaked but this time it was in the form of a giggle when the fuzzy, bunny-ear headband brushed against her side as it slipped off of her. However, the laugh was short lived and she found herself holding back a small moan when heated hands replaced where the headband once were.

Without warning, her entire world tilted as she felt herself being lifted off the ground almost effortlessly and blinked at the carpet that seemed a lot farther from her face than it was a second ago. Her feet instinctively scrambled to support her own weight when she felt the hands slip to the curve of her waist to keep her steady. One of her arm shot forward to grip the footboard of the bed while the other wrapped around her bust, holding the front of her outfit so nothing would spill out against her will.

An involuntary sigh pushed past her lips when one of the hands reached around and spread itself across her stomach, the other hand slipping down the curve of her back to grasp the metal, bane of her existence.

A little lost to what was happening, she turned her head to look over her shoulder. Her brown-orbs widened as it caught the olive-colored gaze that were already focused intently on hers. Despite the flush spreading carelessly across her cheeks, she rose her blonde eyebrow in a silent inquiry. The pink-haired man just grinned in reply and forced a gasp out of her when he deftly pulled the zipper up. The sudden tightening of the costume took away what little breath she had already and she narrowed her eyes at his playful grin.

She opened her mouth to tell him off, but he quickly pulled her against him and shoved the bunny ears onto her head. Her surprised splutter didn't seem to faze him– if anything, it seemed to make him grin wider. The pink-haired stranger chuckled when she ripped away from him and glared heatedly, reaching up to adjust the headband on her head. His head turned when an angry yell shouted from outside the slightly open door.

He muttered something under his breath before turning to her and flicking one of her bunny ears with a grin, telling her that she only had five minutes left because he still needed to change into his costume then strolled casually towards the door. Lucy opened her mouth to say something but pursed her lips to stop it. She should've probably felt embarrassed after the exchange with a man she had only met twice previously. It surprised her when she didn't feel an ounce of it.

Instead, she felt a little flustered, maybe a little warm from where his hands lingered on her body. But most of all, she felt a little confused and a little awed at own skin for reacting so strongly from a touch dulled by a layer of cloth. A feeling of dread settled heavily on her stomach as the epiphany finally hit her because it was working. What her friends were doing was working. She knew she felt drawn to him, but her naturally stubborn nature kept her from admitting it.

Lucy was _attracted_ to this pink-haired stranger and she didn't even know his name.

Oh for _star's_ sake.


	4. Attempt Four

**A/N: Another late-ish chapter! But it's six-thirty here so it's not like I didn't make the deadline. Pfft.** **I'll try to get the next chapter up earlier tomorrow. Email is still acting a bit funny, but that means I just have to keep a closer eye out for your reviews. But anyway...**

 **Thank you all for favoriting, following, or dropping a review. I'm sure I have said this, but I appreciate all the support, even if it is just a read!**

 **Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

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 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Four: 25 December x791, 5:20 p.m._

It was Christmas and Lucy was paranoid.

But her being paranoid wasn't anything new. If anything, her being paranoid was currently the norm of her life since this whole 'let's-set-Lucy-up' debacle started; even her regulars had gotten used to the skittish glances to the café's door. In the beginning, they asked her if she was alright– if they could help in any way, but the golden-haired woman refused politely.

She couldn't _help_ it.

The golden-haired woman sighed, currently waiting for one of her last regulars to leave so she could start wrapping up the café. The yearly Christmas party started at seven and it was Juvia and Gray's turn to host. Lucy was excited because the bluenette's fiancé, Gray, was the biggest Christmas buff in their little group. Actually, he just loved the winter season in general but it domino-ed to Juvia who was always overly-enthusiastic in helping her boyfriend-of-two-years express his ' _emotions_ '.

There was no doubt they'd go all out this year.

Which was kind of upsetting because the blonde was going to host Christmas next year and she had no one to bounce ideas with. Levy had Gajeel, and Juvia had Gray. And that very thought made her temporarily lean towards liking her best friends' nosiness in her love life. Which brings her back to the reason why she started to get paranoid in the first place.

It's been nearly _two_ months since their— _as in her and the pink-haired stranger's_ —last encounter. Two. Months.

Despite knowing that their nonsensical meddling was actually working out in some weird, twisted way, she still doesn't condone what her friends were trying to do; however, she still expected some sort of attempt. She was getting more and more on edge because if there was one thing her friends _were not_ , it would be patient and their next try was taking way too long.

That wasn't to say that she hadn't seen the pink-haired man since then, because she has. Literally speaking. All she did was _see_ him; sometimes he was just strolling casually past the café, other days he would be helping Levy out because the tiny bluenette was currently renovating _Iron Ink_. They had no interactions other than his exuberant waving from across the street and her, more reserved, smile from inside the café.

Occasionally they'd catch each other's gaze when the pinkette impatiently waited outside for either Gajeel or Levy to return, arms too full with books or parchments to wave. That's when he would just smile after she glanced up to catch his gaze. It was those brief seconds of looking that made her overwhelmingly flustered and she had to rip her gaze away before he could notice her blush. She did, however, catch the knowing smile from a few of her regulars but she lifted her chin and ignored it.

The reason for her blush was trivial, really. Or rather, it _should_ have been trivial.

He was just smiling at her, for star's sake.

Although, Lucy couldn't help but admit that maybe his smile was the reason she blushed. It wasn't the childish, uncontrollable grin that he normally had on his face. A grin that— _she'll begrudgingly admit_ —does strange things to her heart when she sees it and, for obvious reasons, his grin was not his smile.

There was something about the lop-sided smile he gave her that made her wonder why he never did it more. His smile was just as carefree as his grin but there was a tender warmth in the way the left side of his mouth lifted just a bit higher than the right. The quirk of his lips never lost the boyishly endearing quality that resided in his grin, but it was a lot more controlled that way. His olive-colored eyes softened whenever he smiled, pooling the warmth once lost in the chill winter brought.

She never thought about it but green was a pretty warm color, wasn't it?

Lucy wore a fond beam as the her last remaining regular (an extremely short, yet kind, elderly man who gave no name but insisted she call him 'Gramps') gently placed his fork onto the ceramic plate and slid from his chair. The white tufts of hair peeked out of his winter cap, bouncing slightly as he strolled over to her. There was a tender touch to the smile he gave her as he reached out to gently pat her hand, wishing her the merriest of Christmases.

The blonde's heart swelled joyfully and she returned the sentiment with equal vigor before sending him off with an angelic smile. She locked the door earlier, but it was designed in a way that wouldn't keep customers from leaving– just kept them out after they left. So instead of moving to unlock the door for one of her regulars, she moved to clean off his table instead.

She was too busy gaping over the hefty tip Gramps tucked under the cup saucer to notice the elderly man kindly holding the door for someone to step in. She missed the way Gramps patted the newcomer's hand much like how he did to her earlier, but this time it was more of an amused ' _good-luck_ ' than a fatherly gesture. She also missed the answering grin that was shot back at the movement, full of similar amusement and just a touch of gratitude.

Lucy just managed to get over her shock long enough to slip the tip into her apron when a warm hand slipped onto her shoulder, making her shriek in surprise and drop the teacup she picked up a moment before.

Thankfully, a large, tanned had shot out to catch the porcelain cup before it could shatter onto the table. The golden-haired woman spun around, her heart nearly bursting from her chest as she prepared to shout curses at the person who invaded her space. However, her breath caught when her gaze was met with a large grin filled with noting but amusement at the situation.

And he answered her question before she was even aware she had one.

Apparently Juvia sent him over to help her out with closing the café. The bluenette told him all about how she was always late to parties because she would take too long and she didn't want the blonde to be late for present exchanging. She wanted to feel offended, but her history told her that what Juvia claimed was true. So instead of protesting, she told him to flip the chairs onto the table while she wiped down the booths. He shot her a wide grin, gave her the teacup he still held in his hands, and strolled over to do what he was told.

Then, completely out of the blue, he told her that his hair was _salmon_ and _not pink_.

Lucy wanted to ask if there was a difference between the two colors but wisely kept her mouth closed and hummed a response. There was an amused disbelief to her smile as she cleaned the dishes from the boot's table and rounded the counter to drop them in the dishwasher.

The golden-haired woman slowly shook her head in disbelief as she walked back out with a damp cloth in hand. The pink– _salmon_ -haired man must have caught the action because he started to whine his argument about the difference in shade, quality, and even how it _reflected differently in the dark_. Lucy didn't know how she managed to do it, but she kept a strong rein on her laughter as she patiently listened.

As she deftly finished her fourth booth of five, she took a surprised note of how he was had already completed half of the sitting area. The blonde also took note that, even with his constant complaining about difference in colors, he still did a heck of a lot better than Gray did when he volunteered to help her close.

Unfortunately, she made the mistake of admitting this to him.

Lucy watched in awe as he yelled some unintelligible garb about being fired up and something about ice-cold strippers before proceeding to complete the last half of the sitting area within the next minute. By no means was her sitting area small. There were roughly about twenty-two tables all with two or more chairs around them. It would normally take the blonde _at least_ ten minutes to flip only half of the the heavy, wood and metal chairs onto their respective tables.

He did them all in three.

She quickly went back to wiping the last table before he could notice her gaping and dropped her cloth onto the counter, asking if he was ready to head out. He was already outside, holding the door open, by the time she replaced her apron for her coat and grabbed her wallet and keys from behind the counter. The golden-haired woman briefly thanked him and locked the door once he let it swing close.

The walk towards Juvia and Gray's apartment was comfortably silent until Lucy remembered exactly what happened the last time she was there. Thankfully she could blame the flush on her cheeks to the chilly winter air and just silently sighed off her embarrassment. The salmon-haired man didn't look to bothered by it, so she couldn't show that it affected her either.

They shuffled into the lobby of the apartment building, laughing after they both shuddered at the insane change in temperature and made their way up towards their mutual friends' apartment. He roughly pounded onto the door, making the blonde roll her eyes at his impatience. Juvia was the one to open the door and beamed at them, waving them into the foyer. The bluenette gave them the job to close the door and she swept her way into the living room, the late comers slowly following behind.

Lucy was halfway through taking off her coat when she felt multiple different eyes staring at her. Instinctively, she froze in confusion and took her time to stare right back at each one of her friends. However, it was the nudge to her right arm, the mess of salmon hair, and the tanned hand that pointed up that made her turn to look and– _oh_.

She's so screwed.

* * *

 **A/N: Before you ask...** **_yes_ , I _am_ leaving at that. **

**MWAHAHAHA!**

 **I actually wasn't going to put that last part in (I intended this chapter to be just pure interaction-fluff with our dear Natsu and Lucy), but then I brilliantly added the last bit just to give my readers some grief, haha!** **I'm kidding, the last part was a little important if only to give a little angst in the next few interactions and whatnot.**

 **Cliffhangers are the worst though, aren't they?**


	5. Attempt Five

**A/N: *flops***

 **Here's the new chapter! I have decided that I will add a bonus chapter and it will be completely in Natsu's 'point of view' (** **third-person of course). It's earlier, as promised! I'm gonna post this on my tumblr since my account is just gathering dust. Might as well use it for Fanfics since my personal life is bleh at the moment.**

 **And since a new chapter means a new attempt and a new attempt means a different day... we're not starting off from last** **chapter! Yay! *hides behind shield* I give you permission to give me– _ahem_ , my shield your best shot** **, but just know that I at least need my hands to type and my eyes to see! You'll— _hopefully_ —get some closure and a little bit of what happened last chapter in this one. **

**I needed drama people!**

 **But anyway, enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

* * *

 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Five: 28 December x791, 11:14 a.m._

Judging by the pattern, it was Levy's turn.

The first attempt to hook her up could be chalked up to the tiny bluenette— _and her forever grumpy boyfriend, Lucy supposed_ —and the third time was definitely Levy's work whereas the second attempt was definitely Juvia's and the Christmas party was hers as well. Which, by the way, she was still upset with the long-haired bluenette about, but forgave her because they were only trying to look out for her.

Nevertheless, the golden-haired woman wanted to believe that after the train-wreck at the Christmas party, they would get the hint that it just wouldn't work out between her and the pin– er, she means _salmon_ -haired man. She hoped that the other person on the other end of this twisted ball of yarn would say something to them because her word alone wasn't working. And she was nearly one-hundred-percent positive that he was enjoying this _as much_ as she was (note the _sarcasm_ ).

Maybe they'd just give up on the hare-brained idea all together. Or, if they still wanted to cling to this weird fantasy that she and the salmon-haired man would be a good mach for each other, she wished they'd _at least_ be a bit more subtle about it. In fact, she wished that they'd be _so subtle_ that she would barely even notice their attempts at all. Levy obviously didn't agree.

If anything, the golden-haired woman believed the word ' _subtlety_ ' was no longer in the bluenette's dictionary.

Honestly. If asking the blonde to follow her before practically shoving her into a dark, cramped closet— _with strength Lucy really shouldn't find surprising anymore and with the stranger she always seems to find herself in awkward situations with—_ wasn't an obvious indicator, Lucy honestly did not know what was.

Complete insanity possibly?

Well, whatever it was, it doesn't change the fact that she had barely exchanged words outside of ' _I'm sorry_ ' with this man and the fact that they... well, it just shouldn't make a difference. Now they were in an incredibly cramped broom-closet. Which– by the way, was _barely_ three-by-four _feet_ in _total_. And if those dimensions were hard to picture, imagine this:

Despite the darkness, she knew his arms caged her head between them, pressing against the wall that chilled her back. His breath was hot against her lips, each smooth puff of air had her closing her eyes to stop her traitorous hormones from raging. The heat of his skin occasionally brushed against the tip of her ears, making her shudder and blush shamefully because she _liked_ it. Her _ears_ for _stars_ ' sake!

She wanted to curse herself out because she _just_ told herself that she wasn't going to fall for this kind of stuff anymore.

And to make matters even worse! Every breath she took involuntarily brushed her chest against his; she was forced to take shallow breaths each time she breathed and make it look like she was getting enough air. She didn't think it worked and they both knew it. In pitted compensation, they silently compromised into a position that _should've_ been less awkward.

But who where they kidding? Really. Is there actually a position in a cramped, locked broom-closet (with a man whom she clearly shared an air of sexual-tension with) where things wouldn't be awkward? Because if there was, she surely would've loved to hear it. The hot air from their shifty moment under the mistletoe two days ago still hung thickly between them and she honestly thought she was going to faint under the heat.

After she realized that she was stuck under the cursed plant that hung from entrance of the living-room, the golden-haired woman opened her mouth to refuse. There was _no way_ she was going to kiss some guy she barely even knew; completely disregarding the fact that they all knew him somehow and trusted him enough to even _think_ about it. Lucy guiltily admits she had shared a drunken kiss with strangers before, but those have been far and few between in her twenty-sum years of living.

So it wasn't like she wanted to refuse because she didn't understand the concept. It was just that her kisses are important to her, no matter how vain that might sound. She's not just going to give her kisses out because of some dumb Christmas tradition involving parasitic weeds that grow on fruit trees. Even so, it still hurt when the salmon-haired man played it off like it was no big deal– like kissing a near stranger would be just as easy as breathing.

But he really didn't mean it like that.

She had been too busy staring up at the mistletoe earlier to have noticed the tautness to his shoulders as he carefully eyed the mortified expression on her face; her mind was too full of refusal to notice the way he sent a harsh glare to each one of the culprits before resigning himself the task to brush the situation off like it was pointless.

It was a matter of pride now and it was probably that stubborn pride that forced her to hook her fingers in his scale-pattered scarf and drag him down to press her lips hastily against his. Despite the anger and hurt boiling in her veins, she couldn't help noticing the heat his lips offered willingly. The warmth somehow counter-acting the boiling in her veins and left it to a low simmer; the emotions were still there, but more of an exasperation than a loathing.

Maybe the laugh she gave before she fled from him was a little too harsh– a little too hurt than she would've liked it to be. Thankfully not a lot of the others caught on to it. She knew Juvia saw past the smile she plastered on her face and it showed even more when the bluenette nearly sobbed herself to oblivion after she started to apologize later that night on the phone.

Lucy did her best to calm her friend down. She told the bluenette that everything was going to be fine but it was safe to say that she didn't bother to stay around the salmon-haired man after that and she had successfully avoided him. Until now, where she was literally forced into a closet with him by her best friend. Still, she tried to ignore every time his fingers accidentally brushed against her hip.

The golden-haired woman refused to believe the heat that shot through her veins every time it did and cursed her traitorous heart for wistfully wishing that his hand lingered longer than it seemed to.

A long time ago, she learned that the best way to avoid things she didn't want to talk about was to feign innocence and Lucy was quite the actress. Multiple times, the blonde had managed to even convince her friends but they knew her too well. But this man, only knowing each other for a little over what? A month? Two maybe? And they never once shared an exchange that would even be considered as the smallest form of a decent conversation?

Lucy was too tired to argue.

So naturally, it was only right to feign ignorance.

As per usual, the golden-haired woman apologized profusely for her best friend's obnoxious meddling. It took a curiously long minute before the salmon-haired man just guffawed good-naturedly— _as usual_ —before he told her to back up. She did so wordlessly and tilted her head when he started to fiddle with the door handle. It was only a few moments later when one part of the surprisingly heavy, metal handle hit the hardwood floor of the closet and then simulated a similar, but duller sound on the carpeted flooring in the hallway.

Artificial light from the fluorescent lightbulbs in the hallway washed into the dark room when the door swung. The sudden change in brightness temporarily caught her off-guard and made her eyes water. Unfortunately, the effect of the lights dulled in comparison to the blinding smile he gave her; the sight reminiscent the the moments they shared before the Christmas party.

Her stomach churned almost painfully and all she could do to stay strong was rip her gaze away to stare down at their feet. She didn't even bother to ask about the questionable way he managed to get them out and instead uttered a small ' _thank you_ ' before fleeing once again.

Lucy desperately tried to ignore the way her heart still throbbed just by the sight of his smile or how her chest warmed whenever she heard him speak. Unfortunately, the attempts were futile. There was no stopping the way her toes curled just at his nearness or the way her body heated to the point of unbearable when she felt his piercing olive-orbs watch her flee. This man made her feel things without even trying.

She doesn't know how she should feel about that.


	6. Attempt Six

**A/N: Isn't it sad when the Disney movie _Wall_** _• **e**_ **has more death (those poor robots) than both Fairy Tail and One Piece combined? Isn't it sad when you're so obsessed with your OTP that you can't help picturing them as main characters in said Disney** **movie (or any Disney movie, really)?** **Isn't it sad when you're watching an innocent movie like _Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole_ and you wonder obsessively about how well the characters— _in whatever fandom you're interested in_ —would do in that universe?**

 **Yes. Yes, to all of it. It is sad, and it sucks. Especially when you're me and watching movies just spark inspiration for a fun fanfic but you barely have the time to write at all.**

 **We're on attempt six! Next chapter will be the last attempt and the last chapter (besides the Bonus of course). Ah. It feels good. It really does.**

 **Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

* * *

 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Six: 31 December x791, 11:05 p.m._

Lucy watched her breath curl in the cool air.

Juvia, in an attempt to right her wrongs, had pleaded to the blonde to come with her to watch the yearly ball-drop in Magnolia. The golden-haired woman refused at first, saying that this was the time where the bluenette should spend time with her fiancé instead of trying to make up for something she had already forgiven her for. It was quite obvious that Juvia did not take any of that.

The next thing Lucy knew, the blue-haired woman stormed into her apartment (why did they share where they kept their spares again?), critically eyed the oversized t-shirt and the nearly hidden shorts the blonde normally wore to bed, shoved a thick coat into her arms, and literally shoved the light-haired woman out of the apartment. Which was where she was at currently– standing in the middle of Main street— _and early, might she add_—freezing her legs off but glad that the crowd wasn't there yet because their combined heat would warm the air too much and she wouldn't be able to amuse herself by watching her breath form and disappear once again in the night air.

She wonders if she'd ever get tired of it– watching the cold Magnolian air chill her expelled breath she meant. Being born and raised in Acalypha, which was normally (or abnormally) warm all year round, there was nothing like this. Not at all.

And as much as she loved her friends, and vice versa, they never understood her fascination with something this simple. Which was to be expected because Levy grew up here in Magnolia, where this wouldn't be so rare in the colder months; Gray lived half of his live in the North near the land of Isvan, where it was snowing practically all year; Juvia lived in Amefurashi Village, where it rained for nearly three-quarters of the year and snowed the last; and Gajeel was born in the mountains, where the altitude was higher and the air was naturally colder.

The only thing that Lucy was most disappointed with was that it didn't snow.

Sometimes the small patch of grass outside of her apartment frosted over, the morning dew unable to fight off the morning chill. The roads and sidewalks themselves have seen ice in their days. So one would expect that with this much cill in the air, it would snow even just a little. But no. Never in the two years that Lucy had spent here did it snow.

It wasn't as if it was a _rare_ anomaly for it to snow in Magnolia because it was quite normal actually. Even Levy said it was strange whenever the blonde brought it up, because the city had seen more white Christmases in its day than not. And although Lucy jokes about her 'luck', it was probably that which kept the white flakes from falling; her so-called 'luck' was a more often a curse. So that was why she went by her middle name, Lucy, when she moved out to Magnolia.

And yes, her name literally is _Lucky Lucy Heartfilia_ much to her chagrin.

Not even her friends knew that though. To them, she was just _Lucy No-middle-name Heartfilia_ and she wanted to keep it that way for now. Eventually though, she was determined to find someone with an even more ridiculous name than hers and they'd laugh at the absurdity of it all. And when she finds someone she loved enough to marry and wants to settle down, she really hoped that he wouldn't laugh when the priest said her full name.

Unless she married that person with the equally ridiculous name and they could both laugh at the alter.

Lucy lift her hands to her mouth to share some of the warmth in her breath, her giggles muffled into her cupped palms. She could only imagine the shocked looks on her friends' faces when her full name was revealed. They always joked about how she had the worst luck in the world and to think that Luck was literally her first name.

She felt Juvia shoot a curious look her way, but the blonde waved her off, the amused curling of her lips hidden by her pale hands. Almost getting caught by her friend's suspicious stare only made her amusement grow further.

Maybe she could try to convince her hypothetical future-husband to tape the ceremony. Not for the memory, or as a keepsake, but just for that moment alone when their names were announced. A camera would never capture the unseen emotions in that moment as well as a memory would, but if she could stare at her friends' gobsmacked expressions and repeat it over and over and _over_ again, then a camera would be enough. Memories will only make the viewing funnier. Seeing as a phone-call distracted her blue-haired best friend, the golden-haired woman didn't bother to hide her smile this time.

The crowd slowly trickled around her without her noticing, the thrumming excitement in the air was what brought her back. Her eyes widened when she saw nothing but unfamiliar faces. Her blue-haired best friend was nowhere to be found and she forcefully pushed down the slight bit of panic that clutched at her heart. She hated crowds, never liked them and never will. The golden-haired woman only tolerated them when she knew someone or if someone she knew was with her.

It's easy to feel alone in a crowd.

Feeling alone was the reason why she moved to Magnolia in the first place.

The grip on her heart loosed somewhat as a familiar face of one of the canal boaters smiled and waved at her. She managed a wave back, but it didn't look like the man noticed the tenseness in the small movement. He just smiled once more before disappearing further in the crowd. Sure the man's presence wasn't as effective as if she saw one of her friends, but it worked and she was thankful for it.

Now thinking a little more calmly, the blonde woman scanned the crowd for another familiar face. Or hair– she'd even take familiar hair at this point. Lucy couldn't fathom how she had been separated from Juvia in the first place. It was possible that she unknowingly stepped away to give the blue-haired woman some privacy. Actually. Yeah. That was probably it. Gray was one of the first people she met in Magnolia and he was always so despondent emotionally, but ever since he and the blue-haired woman announced their engagement...

It was strange hearing him be so... _mushy_ whenever Juvia was involved.

It was weird.

Really weird.

Not to say that she wasn't happy for them, because she honestly was. Especially since Juvia asked her to be in the bridal party (a few months ago, they decided to opt out of the honorary parties like Maid of Honor and Best Man because _apparently_ there would be no single members in their party. Lucy had been highly offended at their confidence that they'd pair her up by then). All Lucy needed a bit more time to get acquainted with the new version of her friend and she'll feel less weird around his emotionally openness.

The golden-haired woman squeaked in surprise as she felt herself being unknowingly nudged deeper into the crowd. A scowl dropped her lips as she regained control of her legs and started to maneuver herself through the bodies of excited Magnolian citizens. Her brown-orbs caught on a blue head of hair a couple of yards in front of her and she felt a breath leave her lips.

Blue hair was pretty common in Fiore, so she didn't let her hopes raise too high but any lead was a lead no matter how wrong it might be.

Lucy pushed through the crowd and gasped in surprise when the last few bodies moved out of the way, causing her to stumble. She would have nearly fallen on her face if it wasn't for the arm that caught her around the waist at the last minute. The golden-haired woman clutched the arm like a lifeline, scrambling to regain her footing and turned her neck to thank her savior. Unfortunately, the sight of pink– _ah_ , sorry. The sight of _salmon_ colored hair stopped her short and then her eyes turned towards the blue head of hair she spotted earlier.

The girl, looking around nineteen— _twenty at most_ —peered at her with a tilted head. Her amber-orbs locked onto her chocolate gaze and offered a hesitant smile that pulled at the blonde's heart. The teen hung off of the arm that wasn't wrapped around her waist and Lucy smiled past the unwanted churn in her stomach. She turned to look back up at the salmon-haired man and hastily stepped out of his hold with a grateful smile. Despite the troubled look on his face, he offered a familiar smile that still caused her heart to skip a beat.

She was still a little mad at him, but she understood that he was forced under the mistletoe too. It wasn't as if he asked for that to happen and Lucy realized that her anger was misplaced and pointless. It still hurt to think about, no doubt about that. However, she never took in account that they're two sides of the coin that their friends were flipping. Besides, it never dawned on her to think that maybe he already had someone else. Someone that their friends might not even be aware of and then guilt suddenly hit her.

Maybe the girl... well she _is_ pretty. Really pretty actually. She kind of reminded Lucy of Levy; tiny and delicate with eyes a little too big for her face. The two bluenettes shared a kind of beauty that often went underestimated. The young woman's timidness was just too cute to handle and before she knew it, Lucy engulfed the smaller girl in a bear hug. The blue-haired girl let out a squeak, half out of embarrassment and the other half from surprise.

The golden-haired woman let out a giddy giggle, pulling away a second before the smaller woman could respond. The bluenette's face was painted red when Lucy cooed at how cute she was, refraining from drawing the girl into another quick cuddle.

There was still timidness deep in her amber depths but also a dash of tentative delight. After a quick look over the blonde's shoulder and confirming whatever with the man behind her, the small bluenette grinned widely. The genuine joy in the motion reminded Lucy a lot of– she turned to look over her shoulder at the salmon-haired gave her that heart-skipping, lop-sided smile and jumped right into the introductions.

Apparently, the young woman the blonde publicly harassed according to the eyes of the law, was his half-sister and _not_ anything else.

She wanted to hide in a hole after hearing that, her face pinking prettily. Sure, the thought was a little more than disturbing _now_ , but they shared no resemblance other than their smiles. It was an easy mistake no matter how daft she felt after making it. Her name was Wendy Marvel and the small bluenette explained that she took her mother's maiden name and that's why it differed so much from her older brother's. Lucy didn't have the heart to tell Wendy that she didn't know her brother's last name.

Or his first for that matter.

Yeah. Wendy definitely didn't need to know that.

The pair was shocked out of their little world when the cathedral's bell rang proud. Wendy set her a confused look and Lucy happily jumped into explaining that the bells signaled half-an-hour to midnight. The little bluenette's eyes widened in slight panicked, her amber-orbs turning to stare up at her brother pleadingly. Lucy was too amused with Wendy's expression to notice the olive-orbs that flickered towards her almost too reluctant to agree, but then his agreeing laughter mingled in the buzzing air.

The blue-haired girl excitedly turned back to the blonde and asked if she wanted to join them to which the woman politely declined. Wendy was disappointed but brightened when Lucy dragged her into another quick cuddle. The bluenette giggled as the blonde cooed over how cute her pout was and how she wished that she had a little sister as cute as Wendy was.

Before parting, Lucy invited the blue-haired girl over to her café for a cup of hot chocolate and a pastry of her choice. All free of charge of course.

The salmon-haired man made an indignant noise, bringing both women's attention to him. He playfully complained at the unfairness of getting a coupon while his sister got _free_ stuff just because of her 'cuteness'. Wendy giggled and shot back to her brother with a smirk, boasting that Lucy thought she was cuter than his ugly mug. The golden-haired woman laughed off the warmth that the man's pout did to her and he grumbled about the little bluenette hanging out too much with their cousin.

Suddenly, the pinkette turned his olive-gaze to her. Something flashed in his orbs before a determined smirk pushed at his lips and he pouted again, asking bluntly if she thought he was cute at all. Lucy's jaw dropped at his question, her face flushing a cherry red as she shot an incredulous look at Wendy. The blue-haired girl only giggled, finally taking some pity on the golden-haired woman and started to push him away.

He protested loudly, making her face flush deeper when he cried out that he _really did want to know_.

Lucy saw Wendy roll her eyes before the small bluenette stopped a brief second to wave. The blonde held one hand over her mouth to hide her smile and her blush, using the other hand to wave back. Once they were out of sight, Lucy held her hands to her face, willing the air to cool down her flush. The pinking cheeks started to hurt by how much she was smiling and her heart was pounding so quickly, she wouldn't have been surprised if it suddenly took off and left her.

Then again, maybe it already did.


	7. Attempt Seven

**A/N: GAH! I'm so sorry for the super late update! I had an impromptu baby-sitting session today for one of my mom's co-worker/friend. Plus there were some complications regarding my class schedule for the next term and whatnot. It always seems that life gets in the way of everything, doesn't it?**

 **Better late than ever though, no?**

 **Anyway, I don't think you understand how weird it was to write dialogue in this part (in this _story_ actually). I was honestly going to opt it out and give vague impressions of speech, but this was always endgame. Dialogue had always been endgame. I can't deprive that of this story, nor can I deprive this of you guys.**

 **So enjoy the speech text. If it's a little awkward... well you know why.**

 **Ugh. I'm so bad at confessions. I don't know about this ending. Maybe one day I'll make a Alternate Ending or something. But for now, this is how it ends. Longest chapter for the ending. Anther reason why it's out late; I just couldn't stop writing.**

 **Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

* * *

 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Attempt Seven: 31 December x791, 11:32 a.m._

It was this attempt that got her, figuratively and literally.

This might come as a surprise, but this ploy came from neither Levy nor Juvia... but hold on, she was getting ahead of herself. After parting from the salmon-haired man and his adorable little sister, Lucy didn't feel up to spirit– which was perfectly understandable.

As weird as it sounds, the golden-haired woman's jolly never really lasted around this time of the year (or rather it would probably be more fitting to say around _the end_ of this year). Christmas cheer was normally the last leg of the joy she had in her happiness reservoir. Which— _if was spoken outside of her own thoughts—_ would make her sound a bit weird.

 _And_ possibly insane because _yes,_ she does have a specific amount of joy she uses each year; _yes_ , she immediately refills once the clock hits twelve a.m. on January first; _yes_ , it was not an unlimited supply; and yes, it does run out.

The golden-haired woman contemplated if she should find her friends, or just hole herself inside of _Celestial Fire_ and thank the _stars_ that she could still see the Ball of Magnolia drop at the stroke of midnight. Considering that Juvia and Gray were about to be married in a few months, went ring shopping with _Gajeel_ of all people the day before, and knowing that her joy is currently running on fumes.

And if she tried to find her friends at this hour, she would either be stuck between what society would consider public intercourse between two fully clothed people, a mushy out-of-character proposal from the grumpiest man on earth, or faking a smile that she knew her friends would see right through the moment they saw it...

So yeah... she'd rather hole herself in her café.

And that's exactly what she does.

Despite not having any bearing about where she was, it doesn't take much time for her to navigate through the crowded street. People paid no mind to her hasty retreat as they jumped and cheered and yelled for the yearly shift. On account, the golden-haired woman had been elbowed in the boob in all but four times, nearly nailed in the face by a stray hand in some sort of complicated handshake that some two people were doing, and she was pretty sure she had been groped by the same person.

Twice.

It was a heavy sigh of relief when the café's automatic heating welcomed her with open arms.

* * *

 _31 December x791, 11:41 p.m._

* * *

Lucy stood in front of the window with a steaming mug of her second favorite holiday drink; Peppermint-Cinnamon Coffee. Second only to Pumpkin-Cinnamon of course. She would've made whatever she had left of this year's pumpkin hot chocolate, but she only makes that particular drink in a giant batch and she didn't want to waste the precious ingredients.

Besides, she limits herself to one cup of any _Celestial Fire_ drink a day to keep the inventory balanced and the cup she was drinking now was what was leftover from the closing brew.

She lifted the mug to her mouth and let it rest there, the scent of peppermint and cinnamon wafting from the chocolate gold calmed her mind and soul. The heat emanating off of the rim warmed her bottom lip as she watched the _Heart of Magnolia_ sit proudly on his perch above the city. The artificial star outshone even the ones above it; his brothers that clung to the branches of the large, royal tree only helped his mission in ridding the night sky of its natural lights. Her eyes narrowed for a split second, but she closed her eyes before her mind could fall.

Lucy surrounded herself with the simplicity that was her café. It was warm, comforting, and delightful. The very walls itself seemed to have soaked, and perfected, the scent of early-morning baking; the aroma reminded her of every sunrise she watched from this very window while she waited to push in the next batch of dough. The lingering smiles as her customers accepted the puff pastries. The wooden tables soaked in the scent of coffee brewing; ever-changing but never failing.

The golden-haired woman reached down and lightly drifted her nails over the shiny varnish of a nearby oak table.

This café kept her more well-grounded than any habit ever did. In here, she struggled and she persevered. She failed and she succeeded. She made memories in here for the past two years and she wants to keep making memories for however long she was able to stay here.

That wish was resolute.

Sharp rapping on the glass snapped the blonde back to reality and she curiously turned her head towards the sound. Strangely enough, the person who caught her attention was probably more shocking than the action he caught her with. Which was actually a stupid thing to be shocked in the first place. He had to expect at least one more attempt from her friends before the year ended and only they knew where she ran off to every year.

Nonetheless, the salmon-haired stranger waved at her with more happiness than she wanted to deal with. Her blonde eyebrow raised when he pointed to the door of her café and then clasped his palms together in a silent plead to let him in. She only crumbled when she saw his clouded breath rapidly leave his mouth in an effort to stay warm.

With a slight roll of her eyes, she pointed to the door as well and then jerked her head for him to follow. The grin he gave her when she opened the door for him told her that her decision she made would be worth the silent turmoil she'd be going through in the next twenty-minutes.

"Yo," the salmon-haired stranger breathed with a heart-stopping grin, stepping into the arms of the warm café.

"Hey..." the blonde greeted hesitantly, quickly glancing over his shoulder before closing the door. "Not to sound rude or anything but..." she trailed, her eyes questioning, "do you need something?"

The grin never left his lips and he dug into his pocket, pulling out a slip of paper. "I want to cash this in before the year ended."

He gave it to her when she beckoned it, peering down at it with a frown. "This is the coupon I gave you."

"Yep."

"But that was, like, four months ago."

"So?"

" _So?_ " Lucy repeated, her tone incredulous. "It's four months old! What do you mean ' _So'_?"

"It actually doesn't have an expire date," he not-so-helpfully pointed out, "so technically it's like new."

The blonde's eyebrows furrowed. "They why do you want to cash it before the year ends? Couldn't you have waited until tomorrow when Wendy came over?"

"C'mon, Lucy," the salmon-haired man laughed, "how do you think it'll look on my 'big-brother' image if I have to use a coupon while my sister gets free stuff because of her cuteness?"

The golden-haired woman rolled her chocolate-colored eyes. "You're still on about that?"

"Of course!" He shot her an offended look. "It hurts when your little sister calls your mug ugly, Luce. It hurts a lot."

"Oh don't be so melodramatic."

"I don't know what that is, but it sounds tasty."

Lucy gaped at his completely serious expression, refusing to believe that he actually said that. There was a second of tense silence before it was broken by the pinkette's guffaws. Understanding dawned on her and rose a hand to cover her face, her other occupied by the steaming mug of coffee. She felt her lips twitch but fought to hold it back. She was supposed to be running on fumes, not trying to hold back a smile because of a stupid joke. Literally.

"Hold on," Lucy rolled her eyes. She quickly placed her mug on the table and tore off a tab from the coupon and gave the slip back to him. "So what'll it be, sir?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "Hot Choco or a good ol' cup of Joe?"

"The best hot chocolate you have," he smiled softly, his olive-orbs softening as they usually did when he did that. "And here," the salmon-haired man lifted her hands and pushed the coupon back into her hands, "just take the second one too. Opt out the baked stuff, I'll drink all of whatever you brew."

The blonde looked down at the slip in confusion. "But shouldn't you save it for tomorrow?"

"Nah," he grinned, "I'm still trying to convince the owner that I'm cute enough to get some free drinks."

And despite her berating earlier, Lucy smiled.

* * *

 _31 December x791, 11:50 p.m._

* * *

Lucy couldn't help but stare at the salmon-haired man in awe.

Not even a minute ago, she walked out of the back-room with four mugs in hand, all filled to the brim with the last of her Pumpkin-Cinnamon brew. She was going to save it, but he asked for the best and he was the customer. Who was she if she were to deny a request like that? Still, she didn't expect him to down all four cups like water. It was like he didn't even feel the burn of the scalding liquid as he drank them. She was surprised that she still had a firm grip on her cup.

"Lucy?" The pinkette called out to her, making her snap out of whatever daze he subjected her to. She narrowed her eyes at him and he shrunk back. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

The blonde continued to peer at him until he shifted under her stare. "You said my name."

"Ah, yeah." His hand dipped into the scarf he was wearing to scratch the back of his neck nervously. "Sorry 'bout that."

"Sorry about what?" Lucy blinked. "That you said my name?"

"No, no! It's just that– I, uh," the salmon-haired man grimaced, "only learned your name about a month ago?"

The blonde didn't know what reaction he expected out of her, but the snort of amusement probably wasn't it. "Oh, don't worry. I still don't know your name, so no harm done."

"What?" He asked in a surprised tone. "You mean to tell me that my metal-faced cousin and that rotten ice-prick had been giving me hell for not knowing your name up until last month and _you_ never knew it from the start?" Lucy shook her head with an amused smile at his accusing tone and he pouted at her. "Now _that_ isn't fair at all."

"It's better this way, don't you think?" The golden-haired woman shrugged. "In seven minutes, it's a new start to a new year."

He gave her an unimpressed look before smiling with a sigh. "New beginnings."

Lucy smiled back. "Exactly."

* * *

 _31 December x791, 11:54 p.m._

* * *

" _Noooo._ Lucy, shut up! Stop laughing!"

The namesake tried to but she couldn't stop the giggles from bubbling over, nor could she stop the tears of laughter from overflowing. She wanted to stop because she didn't think her stomach could take anymore of the pain, but it was no use. No matter what, she couldn't stop remembering why she was laughing so hard and it had come to the point where she had laughed so hard that she was technically reduced to wheezing and snorting when she couldn't get enough air.

" _Luuucy_ ," he whined, "Can you please stop laughing?!" _Wheeze_. "I told you that in confidence!" _Snort_. " _STOP IT!_ "

"I-I'm s-sorry! I-I can- _pfft_!" Lucy spluttered and laughed harder. "Y-Your n-name! I can't! I'm _sorry_!"

"You promised you wouldn't laugh," the salmon-haired man, who fondly went by Natsu, pouted petulantly. "Not even the Ice-prick knows about it. I told you mine, now you tell me yours!"

The blonde wiped a tear from her eye, managing to calm her laughter. "My name isn't _nearly_ as bad as yours, _Natsu_."

"Stop beatin' round the bush! Tell me!"

"I feel kinda bad for forcing it out of you now," Lucy admitted with a small smile. "My name is Lucky Lucy Heartfilia," she could barely contain the smile that threatened to split her face. "It's nice to meet you, _Ethan_."

He scowled at her, but it was half-hearted at best. "I regret telling you anythin'."

"But why Ethan?" She asked after she settled down, sipping her coffee. "It sounds nothing like _Etherious_."

"It's because my Pops loves me, but he's also the biggest idiot in the world." Lucy's eyes rolled curiously to him and he sighed before continuing. "I don't remember much of my Ma, but my Pops said she loved the name. Unfortunately, she kept gettin' mad at him because he always got the names mixed up and eventually she just let 'im call me that. The name stuck for our immediate family but when my Ma passed, Pops started callin' me by my middle name and here we are."

The golden-haired woman blinked. "So not even Wendy or Gajeel knows what your first name is?"

"Nah," Natsu shook his head. "Apart from my ol' Pops and my cat, Happy, you're the only one that knows."

A warm smile slid on Lucy's lips, the amused twinkle in her eye was still left over from her laughter just a few minutes before. "Well if it makes you feel any better, you're the only one who knows my first name apart from my Dad and my dog, Plue."

There was a second of thought before Natsu shook his head. "No, that doesn't really make me feel better at all." No matter what he says later, he still had a smile on his face when she half-heartedly punched his arm. "Why _Lucky_ though?" He asked through his chuckles at her weak attempt to hurt him.

"It's nothing exciting," the golden-haired woman sighed, taking a second to sip her lukewarm cup of coffee. "My mother always had a weak constitution growing up. The doctors at the time predicted that she would never be able to have kids and she grew up believing that. At least, until she met my dad. They were inseparable from the moment they met. High school sweet-hearts, got married after graduation– the whole _shebang_. And then nearly a decade later, by some stroke of luck–"

"–they had you."

"Yeah."

"Y'know," Natsu pondered after a long moment of silence, "that _is_ pretty lucky." He blinked at her a couple of times before something akin to resolve materialized in his olive-eyes. "Before the new year starts, I have a couple confessions to make."

Lucy blinked at the suddenly serious look he gave her and she felt herself fidget on her feet. "Okay, shoot."

"About what happened on Christmas, Luce," Natsu started off, pulling the scaly scarf away from his face in a nervous tick, "I honestly had no idea that they were going to do that and I know I was kind of a jerk–" at the blonde's raised eyebrow, her harshly tugged his lips between his canines, "–okay. I was a big jerk, but I didn't mean what I said. I'm sorry."

"There's no reason for you to be sorry, Natsu," Lucy sighed. "Honestly, I was a pretty big jerk that day as well. I only realized a little too late that they forced you in it too. Of course you wouldn't have known what they were planning–" The blonde paused, her eyes slowly narrowing on the salmon-haired man who seemed to fidget even more. Her mouth formed a little 'o' before her eyes widened and then narrowed sharply. "Unless..."

"Okay!" The salmon-haired man panicked. "So I asked for their help that _one_ time... and maybe all the times afterwards– but could you blame me? I was convinced you hated me when you slammed the door in your own face back at Ice-prick's apartment!"

"That's because you were half naked!" Lucy fumed. "What were you even doing there?!"

"I, er, forgot to pay my water and I live the floor under."

"Honestly, you're such an– _wait!_ " He tensed again, making Lucy scowl. "What do you mean you _asked_ for their help?"

Natsu nervously pulled at his scarf. "I just wanted a chance to talk to you 'cuz you seemed pretty cool, but then we're always winding up in some weird situation and it usually ends with you leaving or avoiding me like the a bad smell."

"Because it was embarrassing," Lucy flushed at the memories, proving her point further. "Couldn't you just– I-I don't know– walk up to me and introduce yourself like a normal person?"

* * *

 _31 December x791, 11:56 p.m._

* * *

"I'm not really good with my words and stuff," Natsu admitted. "Levy and Gajeel knows me the longest out of all of them and they told me to wait 'cuz I have a... foot in the mouth disease. Whatever that means." He scratched his cheek with his finger, "and I don't wanna fuck it up because you are pretty cool and my sister really seems to like you. And I didn't try to talked to you because, well, you're _terrifying_."

Lucy's mouth popped open. " _Excuse_ me?"

" _Shit_ – sorry, that came out wrong!" The salmon-haired man plucked the cup from the blonde's hand before she could chuck it at him. Despite her protests, he quickly placed in on the table and slid it where she couldn't reach it. "I just meant that you scare me– and I know that doesn't sound any better but hear me out!"

The golden-haired woman dropped her glare and crossed her arms under her bust. "Fine. You got a minute, otherwise I swear on all the stars in the sky that–"

"I love you."

Lucy wheezed pathetically, the sound making Natsu laugh despite the situation his words put them in. She didn't understand exactly why he was calm enough to laugh. Unless he just said that to get a rise out of her. If that was the case, she was glad he took her mug away. After all, she would need two hands to choke him.

"At least I think I do."

 _Two. Hands_.

The golden-haired woman spluttered. "You _think_?!"

"I've never been in love before, but I do know that I liked you a lot and that was before you met Wendy," the salmon-haired man grinned, "and that was before we actually talked without something weird happening. And I know that you probably don't like me like that yet, or if you– y'know," he shrugged, "like me at all."

There was a moment of silence and Lucy couldn't deny the warmth that spread through chest. Their previous interactions had been less than a fairytale and more of a nightmare, that was true. Honestly, there wasn't a reason why she should like him at all, but she noticed the way her heart melted whenever he was near. It was her stubbornness that kept her from thinking about it. But now that she could, Lucy supposed she could have fallen for those two months where all he did was smile from across the street. That simple action never failed to make her heart stutter or her face burn.

But it was funny how she could fall for the moments that weren't an attempt from her friends.

"Against my better judgment, I think I do," Lucy pursed her lips, "like you, I mean." The blonde flushed after a second of stuttering and buried her face in her hands, "oh _stars_! Why is this so awkward?"

"We've been through worse," Natsu pointed out with a smile.

The golden-haired woman breathed nervously. "I don't know if it's love, but I do like you. A lot."

* * *

 _31 December x791, 11:58 p.m._

* * *

" _So what now?_ "

The pair closed their mouths and stared blankly at each other for a quick second before laughing, realizing that they both asked the same thing. It was supposed to be a serious question, but they just couldn't help it. Each second of laughter dissolved the tension that hung in the air. Without even knowing it, their shoulder's relaxed and the anxious coil in their chests loosened, letting them both breath easier despite the breathless laughter they shared.

Natsu recovered first but still chuckled at her snorts. "I want you to meet Happy. I'm sure he'd like you a lot too."

"Your cat?" Lucy asked, wiping a tear from her eye. The salmon-haired man nodded and she smiled. "Okay, I'd like that. As long as you bring him along tomorrow so he can meet Plue."

She didn't know how close he'd gotten until he was sliding his hands up the curve of her waist, leaving behind a trail of fire as he coaxed her to him. She willingly moved forward until he held her loosely in his arms. The gentle smile on his face as he looked down at her only reminded the blonde why she liked him in the first place. It was such a far-cry from the usual exuberant grin that he normally wore and _she_ was the one it was directed to.

Maybe she was lucky after all.

"You up for another holiday tradition?" Natsu asked excitedly after glancing at the clock, his olive-eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Because that worked _so_ _well_ last time," Lucy shot him a sarcastic look, sliding her arms around his neck.

The salmon-haired man playfully bumped their foreheads. "Kiss to seal the deal then?"

The blonde gaped at him, her cheeks flushing pink. "Do you really have to be so blunt about it?"

"Well it's gonna happen sooner or later," he shrugged almost uncaringly, smirking when her face flushed deeper and pushing close enough for their lips to tingle.

"There's still a minute left," Lucy muttered.

Natsu only smirked wider. "How long can you hold your breath?"

"Wait! Natsu! _No_ –"

* * *

( **A/N: I was actually going to end it here, but since it was a late update. I added description and a little fluff. So enjoy the 'Omake' type section.** )

 _01 January x792, 12:00 a.m._

* * *

"I hate you."

"No you don't."

"I strongly dislike you."

"Try again, Luce."

"I almost _died_."

Natsu rolled his eyes at her pout. "I didn't hear any complaining."

"I couldn't breathe enough to complain," Lucy glared but cracked a smile when he snorted.

"I just have to do better then."

The blonde squeaked when his arms tightened around her waist, flushing her entire front against his. She didn't even have a moment to scold him because he hastily pressed his lips back to hers and much like the one they shared a moment ago, it completely took what little breath she had already. She both loved and hated of how her lips melted in his caress– of how they moved with only the slow coaxing of his.

The surprisingly gentle hand on her waist scorched through her shirt and warmed her more than the café's heater could ever dream to. He had to release a protective arm from around her to hold his scarf down, learning the hard way that kissing her was hard when she giggled every time her chin brushed against the scaly material.

Every so often, they parted and Natsu took the brief moment to say something that either made her laugh or made her heart stutter. Most of the time it was simple things like how he'd complain how gross coffee was and then completely turn around in the next break and whisper that he didn't mind it. Lucy didn't look too far into the reason, but her face brightened on instinct and her heart throbbed. So she knew it must've been somewhat of a compliment.

In response, she usually buries her fingers through the salmon-colored tufts of hair. Occasionally she would gently scrape the blunt tips of her nails against his scalp and would smile when a shiver ran down his form. It never fails to make him release a sound akin to a low growl and nip lightly at her lips.

Holy stars. What was he doing to her?

"Better?" He panted when they parted for a third time.

She struggled to suck in enough air but managed to smile and nod. "Mm."

Natsu squeezed her hip gently and dropped his other arm back around his waist, the scaled scarf springing back into place. Lucy giggled when he quickly pressed his lips to hers, the scarf ticking her chin again.

"That's a weird place to be ticklish."

"It's not that it's ticklish, it's just that it feels good in a way where I can't help but laugh."

"Still weird."

"Why do you think cats purr, dummy?"

Natsu paused to think about it, made a face of acknowledgement before looking back to her and shrugging. "Still weird." Lucy rolled her eyes and slid her hands onto his chest so she could rest her cheek on his shoulder. He squeezed her waist curiously. "This might sound weird to ask, but when we get married–"

" _When_?" The blonde echoed, her tone incredulous even if her body warmed to the thought. She lift her head to raise an eyebrow. "You sound confident."

"Well duh," he voiced as if it was obvious. "If not me, then who else'd marry a weirdo like you–" His arms tightened around her waist when she went to pull away, anchoring her back to him. " _Luuuce_ , please don't leave!" The pinkette whined, "I was kidding!"

"Fine then," the blonde sighed, dropping her forehead on his shoulder. " _Hypothetically speaking_ , when we get married...?"

Natsu grinned, leaning back so he could look at her while he asked. "When we get married–" he ignored her huff of defeat _, "_ –I was wondering if we could tape the ceremony?"

Lucy felt her lips twist in a knowing smile, knowing exactly why he asked. "Does this have something do do with our ridiculous names?"

" _And_ the looks on our friends' faces."

"Okay," she agreed after a moment and laughed at the eager look in his eyes, "when we get married, we can definitely tape the ceremony."

She forgot to add in the 'hypothetically speaking' but didn't mind when he pressed his lips to hers in thanks.

* * *

 **A/N: Omakes are supposed to feel a bit open ended, aren't they?** **If not then eh.**

 **I'm tired now. The bonus chapter was _supposed_ to go up tomorrow, but I need a little more time to write it since it's all seven parts in Natsu's POV. It's going to take a while but it'll be up eventually. I doubt that it'll be up by Christmas though so to those who celebrate it:**

 **Merry Christmas everyone!**

 **and to those who celebrate something else, then:**

 **Happy/Merry Whatever You Celebrate!**

 **I'm going to work on a few other things now and then I'm going to sleep. Hopefully.**


	8. Bonus Attempt

**A/N: As a self-proclaimed writer, I like to focus on one character in third-person and I tend to 'get-into-character' a little more than I should (genders and personalities are obstacles to overcome, not barriers to stop me). So since I'm currently 'becoming Natsu' expect a lot more little swears/explicit language (I doubt there's anything too explicit though). I apologize in advance if there are any words and/or situations that make any one of you feel uncomfortable (offended, etc.).**

 **But this fic is labeled as Rated T, so it really shouldn't come as a shock. Still yet, this is my disclaimer (even if I put it in the overview for the first chapter).**

 **Expect OOC-ness though. I was in a exceptionally fluffy mood while writing this, so he's probably more in-tuned with his emotional side than a normal Natsu would be. I tried to stay in-character with him, but I just left tumblr a couple of hours before writing this and I was running on a NaLu high. Blame tumblr. Always blame tumblr.**

 ** _Long_ bonus to make up for the wait! Enjoy and as always, see you in the next one! -808Lionfire**

 **Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

* * *

 **Seven Attempts to Fall**

 _Bonus Chapter: 01 January x792, 12:30 a.m._

"Oh! Look, Natsu! It's snowing!"

The golden-haired woman tore herself out of his arms, missing the indignant whine as she did so. It had been nice just holding her after the last few days of her avoiding him like the plague and the salmon-haired man wanted to protest against her sudden fascination with the little, white-specked devils. However, the overjoyed look she shot him over his shoulder made the words die in his throat immediately.

Instead he just smiled at her, the once foreign action stretched across his lips like second nature. Almost instantly, her face flushed a pretty pink and she beamed happily at him before prancing away to press her hands against the glass windows.

He watched her go with an amused smile. If those little white devils made her this happy, then he'd just have to deal with it. Besides, this expression beat the panicked ones she wore whenever she saw him before. He liked a happy Lucy much more than the wary Lucy she was earlier. The salmon-haired man resisted the urge to walk over and fill his suddenly empty hands with her, instead opting to clean up their mess. He knew that she liked to keep her coffee shop tidy and being the thoughtful boyfriend that he was, decided to help out a little.

Natsu nearly dropped the coffee mug with a surprised curse. He waved Lucy's questioning look with a bright grin and she turned back around, but not without shooting him a playfully suspicious look. He rolled his eyes and walked behind the counter to enter the kitchen. He used the term without thinking, but he supposed that's what he was.

Lucy's boyfriend.

He wasn't stupid; he knows that he practically told the woman that they were going to get married (which may or may not have been on purpose), but they haven't really discussed what they were.

When he walked her café an hour earlier, Natsu only had one goal in mind: to make Lucy like him. He didn't care even if she considered him an _acquaintence_ after he left, it was better than her thinking he was the spawn of some unholy creature. Romance would have come eventually. All he wanted to know was that he had a _chance_ and he would've started the new year that much more determined.

He couldn't pinpoint exactly when curious interest for the blonde turned into a pressing want just to be near her. If he had to guess, however, he supposed his curious interest started after their second meeting where she appeared back into his life with no warning– her hair a mess and her clothes equally rumpled, yet he knew he'd never seen a sight quite like her.

The urge to understand who she was started just before the Halloween party where he learned that she was dangerously addicting. The moment in the room he was never allowed in left him reeling and resisting the urge to pull her back into his arms. It really was a strange feeling, but he loved it.

As he waited for the sink's hot water to heat up, he reflected back on everything that happened that happened in the last five months.

Like he told her earlier, his forgot to pay his water so he sucked in his pride and went to the icy-bastard to use their guest shower. But what he didn't tell her was that Gray was pretty easy-going about it and told the salmon-haired man that he had the whole place to himself because he was going to head out with Juvia. If it was two years ago, the dark-haired man wouldn't have trusted him ten feet near his apartment while he was gone. This Gray, however, just wrapped his arm around his fiancée and gave the salmon-haired man free reign.

There was no doubt that Juvia played a huge part in Gray's change and he was happy for them, truly. In fact, the only reason why he moved back to Magnolia three months earlier than planned was to support them because the dark-haired man himself called him up, freaking out about how to propose to the girlfriend that he got after Natsu moved. The salmon-haired man remembered the shock he felt after picking up the man's call, asking if he was serious.

They had kept in touch often, they were friends first and foremost after all. He heard about Gray's girlfriend a couple of times, usually from Levy whenever Gajeel reached out to him, but he was surprised that the icy-bastard was actually that serious about her. The Gray he knew would've broken it off months ago, not because he was a bastard or anything, but because Natsu knew the man had some serious detachment issues. Especially in relationships that runs high on emotions.

Knowing that Gray had enough balls to stay with a girl for more than a year and actually wanted to _propose_ , was a thought that made Natsu depressed.

He said he would be fine moving back into the family house in Alvarez for the last two years to support his half-sister in her last year of high school and waited a year to spend time with the family. In doing so, however, he missed some important happenings in his friends' life. Gray got himself a girlfriend and changed for the better while some sick twist of fate hooked up his rotten metal-faced cousin, Gajeel, with one of his childhood friends. Who knew what else he missed?

So after a quick okay from his little sister, Natsu packed whatever he could and jumped on the earliest flight to Magnolia. He planned to tease the crap out of his rival the moment he arrived, but made sure to tell Gray that his decision to get married was backed up and supported with the Dragneel stamp of approval.

He managed to accomplish his mission even through his lingering motion sickness and the lucky bastard proposed later that night.

Unfortunately, Natsu's old apartment needed a healthy dose of TLC after his two year absence and would take at least a week. So while the cleaning people did their jobs, he crashed in Gajeel and Levy's place (with their— _mostly Levy's_ —permission) that was conveniently two floors above his apartment and directly above Gray and Juvia's. They were lucky to score an apartment with three bedrooms. Strangely enough though, Levy was adamant for him to sleep in the guest room deep into her apartment rather than the one that was near the door.

Natsu questioned why, but the woman refused to explain and Gajeel deadpanned that he'd beat his ass if he even took one step foot into that room. He never tried, but the dirty looks he'd get from Gajeel was enough to make him curious. He feared that they'd kick him out if he tried and there was no way he was going to ask Gray when all he heard were some very soft, very explicit noises that rose from between the floorboards (damn his naturally good hearing).

There was one time Gajeel took a swing at him because he accidentally tripped onto the door (he swears on his live that it really was an accident!) after returning from a run and he never forgot it. It took a few days for him to 'repay' his cousin's kindness because he refused to barge in Gajeel and Levy's bedroom while the tiny bluenette was sleeping in it too.

One reason was because Levy was his childhood friend and he had more respect for her to not disrupt her sleep because he waned to play a prank on his cousin. The other reason was because he could only guess how many books the woman kept in her bedroom; there was no way he was going to rouse the tiny woman's wrath with that many weapons around.

So after the fifth day of staying at their place, opportunity knocked on his door and he was too eager to ignore it.

Natsu was stepping into his temporary room, still dressed in his running gear, when a knock rapped quickly onto the door. He was about to head back out to answer it, but Levy breezed past him from the room she shared with Gajeel, telling him that she got it. The salmon-haired blinked for a moment before shrugging and stepped back into his room.

Voices squeezed from under his closed door and then another door opened. It was too loud to be the front door and too quiet to be Levy's, so he swiftly decided the noise came from the door that he was nearly slugged for tripping into. He contemplated to stick his head out out of curiosity and would've had a perfect view into the room, but decided against it and settled for listening instead.

Levy's voice was distinct even past the loud rustling of plastic but it was the soft chiming of the second voice that peaked his interest. After meeting Juvia a few times in the apartment lobby, he knew it wasn't hers. The voice was more of a caress– a soft whisper that lingered without you knowing it. Juvia's voice was more clinging, too bold to be ignored for too long.

It also helped that the voice didn't say her name nearly seven in a sentence ( _no offense_ , Natsu thought warily).

He grinned when the unfamiliar voice shouted out a loud, triumphant _ta-dah_ right before a song he knew Gray _hated_ played around the apartment. His grin only grew when mad cackling from both women filled he silence the song left and he went to open the door but Levy's farewell shout to the apartment and the slamming front door stopped him.

There was a moment of regretful wonder of what would've happened if he opened the door earlier, but deemed it not important because with Levy gone (and he knew his metal-faced cousin was still sleeping the morning away), he could finally replay his cousin with a good ol' face drawing prank. Natsu spent the rest of his morning laughing at Gajeel as the crimson-eyed brute tried to wash the permanent inking of a dick from his face.

The soap and water did absolutely nothing to help. Gajeel growled at him before yanking the smaller man by the scarf, saying that after they found Levy (because she had some magical way of getting permanent ink off, apparently) he was officially kicked out of their apartment.

Which was fine by Natsu, the cleaners called him ten minutes before Gajeel woke up and told him him that his apartment was ready to be lived in once again. So he didn't mind it when his rust-bucket of a cousin dragged out of his temporary home. And when he entered his apartment later that day, with a small, rectangular slip of paper in his hands, he was actually glad that Gajeel kicked him out.

Because that's when he first met _her_.

Natsu's olive-eyes glanced out of the kitchen doorway, easily pinpointing the blonde's form pressed against the glass of the café. He turned off the faucet with a smile, loading the last of their mugs into the dishwasher and wiping his hands on a dishtowel. He took note of Lucy's awed expression as he came up behind her while she continued to watch the snow lazily fall from the sky.

Unable to help himself, he slid his hands against her waist and curled her back into him. He sighed in content, filling his arms with her once again and pressing his face into the crook of her neck. One of her hands slipped into his hair and tangled her fingers into his salmon-colored locks. The other hand reached for one of his that rest on her stomach and threaded their fingers together. She instantly melted against him, making him smile and press a soft, grateful kiss over her languid pulse.

"Happy New Year, Lucy," he whispered against her neck and felt her shoulders bounce slightly as she giggled.

"I completely forgot about that," she whispered back, lazily dragging her fingers through his hair, "Happy New Year, Natsu." She tilted her head so she could rest it comfortably on his, her hand never ceasing their movement, "So tell me," she engaged conversation when he snuggled closer, "what do you want to accomplish this year?"

"A New Year's resolution?" Lucy nodded. "Honestly, I got what I wanted before the new year started."

"Oh?" Her tone was curious. "And what was that?"

"You."

Natsu felt her pulse quicken and he muffled his laughter against her neck. "You're going to be the death of me, I swear," Lucy muttered softly. "Do you really have to be so blunt about stuff like that?"

He lifted his head and rest his chin against her shoulder, humming thoughtfully. "Don't see why not." Even with his eyes closed, he could see her rolling her big chocolate-colored eyes. "What about you? What do you want to accomplish this year?"

"You're going to think it's stupid," she murmured shyly.

"Try me," he challenged, eyes popping open to eye her reflection in the window.

Lucy hesitated and sighed when he squeezed her reassuringly. "I... wanted to see snow this year."

"Well you got your wish," Natsu grinned, his sharp canines making an appearance. "What's up with you and snow anyway?"

The golden-haired woman pursed her lips before shrugging her unoccupied shoulder. "I grew up in Acalypha and it never snows there. The seasons actually don't affect that area at all. Of course, it was colder in the winter and hotter in the summer, but neither were too significant." She gently tightened her fingers around his, her hand in his hair pausing its motion. "July will mark my third year since moving here and it never snowed."

"Not even once?"

"Not even once."

"Weird," Natsu muttered.

"Yeah. Levy said that too," she sighed, leaning her head back to rest it on his shoulder, "makes my first name seem all the more ironic."

He chuckled and then smirked, "you really _do_ have crappy luck– _ow!_ Geez, let me finish at least." Lucy grumbled under her breath and apologetically smoothed her fingers over the locks she pulled in retribution. "What I _meant_ to say, was that I think your luck isn't meant for you," he pressed a forgiving kiss on the underside of her jaw and continued, "your luck isn't selfish, Luce. You have a big heart for others, I saw it when you hugged Wends without even knowing her."

"You may think you're not lucky, but that's just because you've already given away your share before you could use it." Natsu gently smoothed his free hand against her stomach to pull her closer. "The stripper told me you nearly slapped him for being an ass to the water lady. You helped him gather enough courage to ask her out, y'know. So don't think that your name brings bad luck, okay? You deserve every letter in it."

Lucy turned her head and whispered her lips against his temple. "Thank you."

"Only speakin' the truth, Luce," he smiled.

The golden-haired woman untangled herself from him and he found himself starting to protest, but his throat dried up when she turned around and pressed back into him. His arms immediately reclaimed its place around her waist while her arms circled around his neck, dragging him closer– not that he minded; he was already completely and irrefutably under her control.

Being the instigator of their past few kisses, Natsu eagerly waited on bated breath as Lucy leaned further onto him, using him as support as she rose on her toes. He was more than happy to accept her weight and willingly lowered his head when her skillful fingers tangled back into his hair to pull him in. He could already taste the lingering aroma of coffee on her breath and normally, he hated anything to do with the drink that reminded him of tar and nightmares.

But damn did she make it taste good.

Before their lips could meet, however, a ringtone shocked the pair out of the little world they bubbled themselves in. Natsu groaned, softly dropping his forehead against Lucy's. He muttered a low curse that made his partner laugh and push his scarf down so she could leave a sweet, lingering kiss on his lips. In his chest, his heart expanded and warmed even as she pulled away to search for her phone.

And as his olive-eyes traced the way her golden tresses swayed with each step she took, he was suddenly beyond doubt now.

He was undeniably and completely in love with this woman.

Oh _gods_ was he ever.

Lucy was nearly bouncing on her feet as she answered the phone call; her entire body quivered and exuded excitement. Natsu chuckled at the sight, remembering the nickname his metal-faced cousin called her and the costume she wore for Halloween. It seemed all too fitting for her when she looked as if she was ready to bounce off the walls. Natsu decided to let her be for the moment and flipped a metal chair off of one of the tables and sank into the cushion-lined seat.

He dropped his chin into his hand and was contented to watch the blonde wave her free arm wildly as she chattered on about things lost to him. Sitting down in this area reminded him of the time right before the disaster at Juvia and Gray's place. He wasn't lying when he said Juvia sent him to make sure Lucy made it to the Christmas party.

He had his own motives as well.

Natsu noticed her busily closing her café before the Halloween party. He figured that she was alone, probably because she let her employees off or something. It was at Thanksgiving dinner where he learned her name and the reason why she didn't show up.

Lucy never took a day off unless it was absolutely necessary and she wore herself out that day. She stubbornly refused any help her employees would offer and would, more often than not, close the shop by herself on Holidays. He didn't give out his respect easily, but the golden-haired woman took all of it without even trying. She was just being _her_ and maybe that's why he fell so hard.

He admired her strong will and her fierce loyalty towards her employee's personal and familial lives. She was so deeply integrated in anything family related that she would sacrifice her own time so others could enjoy their time off. It both intrigued him and frustrated him to no ends. Here was a woman, so strongly loyal to her job and her friends, yet she was so blind to the family she had around her.

He gets why she wants to help others.

But, really, who was helping her?

She was too stubborn to accept help but he was immensely glad when she allowed him even the menial task of putting up chairs. He needed to show her that she didn't have to do things alone– that there were always people willing to do what she does and give up some time for others to enjoy theirs. Every time he saw that distant look in her eyes, he finally understood what it meant to be so close but feel so far away. Every time he saw that look, his hands twitched to pull her back to them– to him.

He felt much better now though, because she goes to him willingly. Like now, even as she was too excited to keep still, she still gravitated towards him and accepted his invitation to curl onto his lap, lean her head on his shoulder, and let him absentmindedly play with her fingers as she talked to whoever was on the other line.

At this moment in time, Natsu felt way too loved for his own good. He was still in a daze like this was all a dream– like he was a teenager in one of those sappy movies, pining after a girl who never even knew his name, and trying to muster up the guts to talk to her.

"Yes, I'm at _Celestial Fire_ ," the blonde's voice muttered into his mind, drawing him back into reality. "Well, yeah– _what_? NO! How about you, huh? How bad was rust bucket's proposal– don't ' _wh-what are you talking about, Lu_ ' me!" Lucy mocked and then let out a sarcastic laugh that made Natsu chuckle. "Two people can play this game, Levs– _no_. _I_ was the one that went out to help him pick a ring– the fu– _no he did not_. He's the biggest friggin' liar in the world– _NO_ , _you_ kiss _my_ ass, Rusty nuts!"

Natsu burst out laughing, too amused at this new side of Lucy to keep quiet. Her responding sass to his cousin's smart-ass comments was probably the best thing he has ever heard and couldn't help but chortle. The blonde had to lift her head to keep her mind from bouncing.

"Yeah, he's here–" Lucy's face scrunched, " _no_ , I am not giving him the phone... I'd rather crawl through Tartaros' flames than– oh yeah? Well feel free; it'll take you guys half an hour to get here and I can easily pack up and leave before– _oh yes, I would dare_. No– wait! Wait, Natsu _stop_!"

He ignored her protests and pressed the phone against his ear. "Dragneel speaking." The answering hollers mixed both male and female but every voice was too garbled to make out. Still, he grabbed the phone for a reason and he was intending to follow through with his plan. "Yes, yes," he muttered boredly over their mixed voices, not listening to them anymore. "Of course, it was nice talking to you too. Now I'm going to hang up on you because you bothered an important moment of holiday celebration. Goodbye."

There was a collective shout of ' _Wait!_ ' before he jabbed his finger into the 'end-call' button. He turned the phone to silent and placed it on the table next to them, grinning at Lucy's gobsmacked expression as he did so. The salmon-haired man curled his arms around the blonde's waist and secured her onto his lap. Her mouth flapped open before closing and repeating a few more times before she actually made out words.

"Now look what you did!"

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "What did I do? I just hung up on them."

"Yeah, but now they're going to think–" Lucy's face reddened as she cut herself off, a hand rising to hide her cheeks. He didn't have any of that though, and captured her hands in his. He purposely smiled to make her face flush deeper.

"Are they wrong?"

"Wh-What?"

"Are they wrong to assume what they were thinking?"

Her chocolate-eyes widened and she shrunk into his embrace, shyly looking up at him from her eyelashes. "No."

Natsu's answering grin must have gave her the confidence she lost while talking to their friends because her smile turned mischievous. She slid one arm around his neck and used her free hand to tug down his scarf. He reacted almost instantly. It was funny how just a few kisses between them gave birth to a tall-tell sign to know when he was about to kiss her, or when she was about to kiss him. Just the simple act of moving his scarf away so it wouldn't tickle Lucy's chin made their hearts race in anticipation.

He wasn't disappointed.

The pinkette let her lead the kiss, enjoying the way his lips automatically moved in time with hers– the way she silently coaxed him into sucking a plump flesh into his mouth. There were no barriers between them like this and he worshipped every command her lips mouthed onto his. There was something intimate about the way she led them. Compared to his lead, she walked them through a slow, languid pace, but no less passionate. And despite the the slow pacing, it always ended way too soon.

Lucy pulled away slowly and Natsu felt the smile on his lips when he stubbornly followed, but gave in when her hand dipped into his scarf to lightly trace the scar on his neck. If there was one thing that made him tremble besides having her fingers tangled in his hair, it was when she traced his scar. Rationally, he knew that a decade-old wound shouldn't have felt so sensitive under her touch, but it did and had no explanation why.

"How good are you at acting?"

Natsu could clearly see the confusion on her face when he asked that. "Why?"

He grinned mischievously. "I'd bet everything I have that the gang will be barging in here in the next five minutes."

"That's a trap bet," Lucy mumbled, resting her forehead against his, "that's obviously going to be the case."

"Let's prank 'em."

Blinking, the blonde's smile matched his. "How so?"

"I'll be here, and you go sit in the farthest booth away from me," he smirked, "and when they come in, shoot me your deadliest glare and make sure it looks believable. I want them to think we hate each other's guts."

There was a brief moment of silence before Lucy cackled, the positively evil laugh somehow making his admiration for her grow. She jumped off of his lap, ready to move into position. However, before she could take a step towards the booths, Natsu snatched her hand and pulled her back to him. He steadied her when she stumbled and smiled warmly at her confused look.

"I love you."

Her mouth popped open in bewilderment, just like he knew it would. She always found it shocking whenever he said it and it always amused him whenever she flushed a deep red. Then again, this would be his third time saying it (the second time was in the midsts of a heated kiss), so she probably hadn't gotten used to hearing it. Well then, he just had to make sure he kept repeating it until she did.

Finally, the golden-haired woman got over enough of her shock to tug his scarf down and press another sweet kiss to his lips, mumbling words that spread through his chest like fire before fleeing get into position.

" _I love you too._ "

* * *

 **A/N: Aaaaand that's a wrap, my nerdy-nums!**

 **People a-many (mainly two) had asked me if I was going to do a wedding scene because I teased it in the other two chapters, and the answer was _most likely_. It'll either be a spin-off fic, or in the same universe, but the fic would be promoting a different pairing. At this moment in time, it is unclear– _pfft_. **

**Sorry. Tryna be formal and stuff.**

 **But anyway, I want to do it, but I don't know which couple to choose from. I always wanted to do a story with Wendy (I'm obsessed with RoWen right now), the baby of the group. Unfortunately I don't know where to even start with them. Gajevy and Gruvia is already a thing and I'm not gonna dual wedding Gruvia and Nalu. Nope. Too much weddings in one fic.**

 **To (my multiple Guests) Guest and Guest:** I'm so very sorry for not replying to you guys throughout this fic ;–; please forgive me. I really appreciate the support you brought and I really hope you liked it! Thank you for stopping by and giving this story a read and a review, it really means a lot to me!

 **Signing off! -808Lionfire**


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